Shane Roller hopes a return to his onetime adopted hometown of Las Vegas works out as well for him this weekend as a recent move back to his native Oklahoma has.

“I love fighting in Vegas,” Roller told MMAjunkie.com Radio (www.mmajunkie.com/radio) this week in preparation for his UFC 148 bout against John Alessio. “It’s just the fight capital of the world. Everybody knows when you’re fighting in Vegas, it’s the real deal.”

The lightweight matchup between Roller (10-6 MMA, 1-3 UFC) and Alessio (34-15 MMA, 0-4 UFC) will be the first bout shown on the FX-televised prelims of Saturday’s blockbuster UFC 148 show at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. The main card, headlined by a rematch between middleweight champ Anderson Silva and Chael Sonnen, airs on pay-per-view.

While the 32-year-old Roller is eager to get back in the cage in Sin City, the biggest change in his career occurred outside the octagon three months ago when Roller, his wife and three kids moved back to his hometown of Bixby, Okla., which is located just outside of Tulsa.

“I’ve got three kids, and being away from their grandparents and cousins and things was hard on them,” said Roller, a four-time Oklahoma high school state wrestling champion and a Big 12 champion at powerhouse Oklahoma State University. “It’s made it a lot easier on us training-wise. If we needed a break or something, the grandparents would jump in and help out.

“Sometimes it’s tough when I’m training a lot to expect my wife to get all of them to where they need to be. I’ve got a daughter who is 5 years old playing softball, a son who is 7 playing baseball. We got a lot more help in my hometown.”

Roller, who is on a three-fight losing streak and likely needs a win to stay employed with the UFC, said he thinks his personal transition will lead to a bounce back in his professional career.

“Every fight is a must-win, but after losing three in a row, this is a definite must-win,” Roller said. “You’ve got to get over the losses, but that being said, that’s why I made the changes that I did. I know that what I’m doing now is so much better.

“I’m excited to get in there and compete again. I don’t really know what it was, but I was feeling like I was really going through the motions down in Texas. I feel more energized and excited to be here and ready to get back in the octagon. I’m loving it.”

While Roller is still managed by Team Takedown and cool with everyone on the squad, including OSU wrestling pals Johny Hendricks and Jake Rosholt, his recent departure from Texas to Tulsa has meant another transition in training — much like his previous move when he switched camps from Xtreme Couture after moving to Texas from Vegas.

“They still manage me, but I don’t train with them,” Roller said. “I’m still good friends with all those guys. I did one week during this training camp down there and trained with some of the guys, but my main training partners are in Tulsa.”

Roller credits a new smaller core of guys in Tulsa, including MMA fighter Gerald Harris and boxer Allan Green, for sharpening his skills in a short amount of time.

“It’s a little group we got, but sometimes that’s good because all the attention is on you,” Roller said. “Everybody’s eyes are on the person that has the fight coming up. I like it like that.”

Much like Roller, the just-turned 33-year-old Canadian-born Alessio is looking to stop a losing streak in the UFC. Alessio continues to look for his elusive first win in the organization.

The veteran — who trains out of Las Vegas, and has rolled up 10 victories in his past 11 fights — dropped a decision to fellow Canadian Mark Bocek during his return at UFC 145 in April.

While their paths never crossed at Xtreme Couture, Roller is expecting a crafty veteran fighting with everything on the line.

“Anyone who has 50 fights like he does isn’t going to be shocked by anything,” Roller said. “He’s calm and cool with everything. He’s good in all positions. He’s good at getting up off bottom and taking people down too. And he has good striking. But I see some holes that I’m looking to exploit.”

Looking back at his own losses, including his January setback to Michael Johnson, Roller saw several holes in his own game — but that’s when he decided to put his career in motion.

“I was to the point where something had to change, make some changes to get back on winning track,” Roller said. “I’m sure if everything was going good and winning, I probably wouldn’t have made the change.

“This was something I just needed to do personally where I felt I would have more success with my lifestyle if I was back home.”

MMAjunkie.com Radio broadcasts Monday-Friday at noon ET (9 a.m. PT) live from Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino’s Race & Sports Book. The show is hosted by “Gorgeous” George Garcia, MMAjunkie.com lead staff reporter John Morgan and producer Brian “Goze” Garcia. For more information or to download past episodes, go to www.mmajunkie.com/radio.

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